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User blog:Ponyo Fan/OPINIONS NEEDED: Is the ParodySponge episode "Water Sex" inappropriate for this wiki?
The episode in question does begin with a PG-13 rating, however only mentions "Religious and sexual references." This in my opinion violates the rules already by not mentioning two uses of censored strong language, as well as an implied rape scene and other thematic material throughout. However, I believe everything about Water Sex as a whole pushes the article to indecency/R-rated territory. Our rules on sexual content vs. "Water Sex" "Sexual activity may be briefly portrayed with some restraint; no worse then what you would see in a basic cable program or a young adult book." While it is true that perhaps the actual scene of sexual activity itself was not explicit (God disrobing Mary and throwing her into the lake, leaving the rest implied), Mary's age itself increases the impact of the scene strongly. There are simply no basic cable programs or young adult books (or adult books really) which put twelve-year-olds into this kind of sexual situation. Therefore, I would say the episode violates our sexual content policy. Our rules on theme vs. "Water Sex" "Mature themes are acceptable, but their treatment must be suitable for young teenagers." We have four mature themes dealt with here: the use of religious figures as sex symbols, sexual violence, pedophilia, and incest. None of which I would say were handled in a way which is suitable for young teenagers. While it is very hard to even think about using religious figures as sex symbols in a way that is suitable for our wiki (the only program that I can think of that has done it is South Park, which is TV-MA/R), the treatment of the subject was not suitable in the language that was used ("there's this hot-ass twelve year girl on Earth that I'd really like to f***", "Ooh! Ooh! Can I be the one raping him? Please!") for young teenagers. The portrayal of sexual violence was comedic and consequence-free. While this will strike a nerve with a lot of people, this isn't the part I'm most bothered with. Family Guy does this on a semi-regular basis and is rated as suitable for young teenagers. However, programs like Family Guy do this with adults, or at least older teenagers, and never use religious figures. The fact that Mary is barely pubescent in this scene, as well as the use of two religious figures ups the impact of this scene to very strong and unsuitable for young teenagers in my opinion. The portrayal of pedophilia has the argument that it least makes an effort to show the behavior is wrong/questionable ("...You want to f*** a twelve year old girl?" Gabriel asked, a disturbed look on his face."), however the fact that it is God initiating the indecent acts almost excuses it and therefore makes the impact of the theme very strong and unsuitable for young teenagers in my opinion. Incest is a tricky subject, because the only other spinoff that has dealt with it was a drama of my own; Sponge x Squirrel. However, the way the show dealt with it showed the consequences of these feelings and explored how society views them, and never went into crude detail, therefore, in my opinion, making my spinoff suitable for young teenagers. (Anyone who wants to argue this by making a blog post of their own is free to.) However, the way this episode deals with incest is through crude references ("You call your son a filthy pig?" Laci asked. "Don't worry, it's okay. It's and I's kink," Jesus said nonchalantly.", "Maybe I could even end up having a son! That way I could have him nailed to a cross and left there to die! And later I could jack off to his sandals!" - God is referring to Jesus in this scene), none of which are necessary to the story or are portrayed with consequence or negative reaction. And again, we have religious figures being used, something a show like SxS never did. Therefore, it is my opinion that the theme of incest in this episode was handled in a way that is unsuitable for young teenagers. What do you think? Here's what I believe should be done, one of these three possible scenarios: a) If the wiki does not believe the content is indecent and it deserves a spot on our wiki, the episode is given an R rating and the special 'parents strongly cautioned' disclaimer, cautioning it is intended for mature readers over the age of 18. Future episodes of ParodySponge will have to be submitted to admins before being posted on the wiki if they contain this kind of content. b) The episode is temporarily taken down, and the creator (TravisTheGreat) works together with the administration team to reconstruct the episode in a way that is suitable for young teenagers. c) The episode is removed all together and TravisTheGreat receives a warning for posting inappropriate material. However, I want you guys' opinion. I know I don't hang out here as much as I used to, and for all I know I could just be getting to be an old fuddy-duddy. This could be the new norm - cultures change over time after all. Don't be afraid to comment, I don't bite. Thanks, Ponyo Fan (talk) 03:10, November 26, 2015 (UTC) Category:Blog posts